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Searching for a perfect monitor today has become a little confusing due to availability of vast variety of monitors in the market. Now if you are looking for an external monitor for Macbook pro retina then this task becomes a little harder due to compatibility issues. Don’t worry we have compiled some of the best external monitors for macbook pro retina that you can check out in this publication below. But if before you do that we recommend you read through some of the things that you should look for in a monitor to make your purchase a smart one.

HDMI Port or Display Port Connection

MacBooks can connect to an external monitor via HDMI cables and connecting through HDMI cable you can enjoy the following refresh rates through them.

3840 x 2160 (30Hz)

4096 x 2160 (24Hz) – No Mirror Support

If you are looking to do any task on your MacBook that requires higher refresh rates and you want it to be displayed on the connected external monitor then it is better to connect your external monitor via display port rather than HDMI port because display port will allow you to enjoy 60Hz refresh rate on 4K resolution.

Refresh Rate

The next thing you should be considerate of when it comes to monitors is the refresh rate. The refresh rate of the monitor has to be high enough if you want to do any kind of studio work or video editing. If you are going to get a 4K monitor for your MacBook then the highest refresh rate that is commonly available in the 4K monitors today is 60Hz. We recommend that you don’t go below that refresh rate.

Resolution

The next thing that is important in the selection of a monitor is the resolution. Now most commonly used monitors today are 4K monitors a lot of users are upgrading to 4K resolution from Full HD and WQHD resolutions. So it is better for you to get a 4K monitor for your MacBook Pro rather than going for an older technology and older resolution. MacBooks can support up to 5K resolution monitors but those are really expensive and frankly the 5K resolution is not that common in use and has a lot of time to catch up.

Response Time

Now if you are looking for an external monitor that you are going to use for gaming then you have to keep in mind that for a smooth gaming experience you need a fast response time out of your monitor. Now the response time depends on the panel type your monitor has. The fastest response time you will get out of a monitor which is using TN panel but at the compromise of color quality.

Dynamic Refresh Rate Module

This is another factor which is important in a monitor that is going to be used for gaming purposes. There are two dynamic refresh rate modules that are used in the monitors nowadays i.e. AMD FreeSync and NVIDIA G-Sync. These modules are there in a monitor to sync up the refresh rates of the monitor and the GPU to provide tear free picture during gameplay. You can choose the module of monitor according to the GPU’s manufacturer on your MacBook.

The first external monitor we have on here for MacBook Pro Retina is the model 27UD88-W produced by LG. LG as we all know is a reliable brand when it comes to production of high quality display units such as 4K TVs and Monitors. This particular monitor is better suited to the MacBooks produced in the late 2016. This particular monitor has very high ratings. How it fared in our review? Let’s find out.

Let’s start with the design of the 27UD88-W 4K monitor. The monitor features a very elegant design that is also an ergonomic design. The 27UD88-W 4K monitor features an adjustable screen height along with screen tilt and pivot design feature as well. The 27UD88-W 4Kmonitor is VESA wall mount capable (100mm x 100mm). The viewing angle of this 4K monitor is 178o/178o vertically and horizontally.

When it comes to features the 27UD88-W 4K monitor has got plenty of them. The 27UD88-W 4K monitor uses 4K UHD technology and has screen resolution of 3840 x 2160. The refresh rate of the 27UD88-W 4K monitor is 60Hz. The panel used in the 27UD88-W 4K monitor is IPS which produces better picture quality and gives out better viewing angles. The response time on this 4K monitor is 5ms. The backlight technology on this 4K monitor is covered by LEDs. The brightness produced by this 4Kmonitor is 350cd/m2. The color depth on 27UD88-W 4K monitor is 10bit. The color coverage by this 4K monitor is 99% of sRGB standards. The dynamic contrast ratio on this 4K monitor is 5M:1 and the aspect ratio is 16:9.

The dynamic refresh rate module on this monitor is AMD’s FreeSync which allows for a smooth gaming experience without any picture tearing. There is a built-in game mode on this monitor as well when activated it sets everything up to be more responsive for better gameplay. The black stabilizer on this 4K monitor allows for better visibility of the black. When it comes to wired connectivity there are 2 x HDMI ports, 2 x USB 3.0 ports and 1 x Display port. There is USB Type-C support on this 4K monitor as well.

When it comes to performance the 27UD88-W 4K monitor performs excellently with a MacBook Pro Retina and has no reported issues regarding it’s performance. The picture quality on this monitor is very good with the best build quality. The response time on this 4K monitor is a little slower but the difference is very little to affect your gaming experience.

Pros

Cons

Ergonomic Design

No HDR

Game Mode

AMD FreeSync

Conclusion

The 27UD88-W 4K monitor provides the best option for a monitor with USB Type-C support. The performance is excellent and you cannot ask for a better 4K monitor in it’s price range.

The next external monitor we have on here for MacBooks is the model GW2765HT produced by BenQ. BenQ is a reputable manufacturer when it comes to producing high quality display equipments whether they are projectors or monitors. This monitor here is not a 4K monitor and is more of a simple option we decided to look at. This monitor has high ratings. How it fared in our review? Let’s find out.

We start with the design of the GW2765HT monitor. The monitor features a ergonomic design with lots of adjustments. The screen height of this monitor can be adjusted to 130mm. The screen pivot angle is 90o. The tilt angle of the screen is between -5o to 20o. The swivel angle of this monitor is 160o. The viewing angle of this monitor is 178o horizontally and 178o vertically. The GW2765HT monitor is VESA wall mount capable as well (100mm x 100mm).

When it comes to features the GW2765HT uses WQHD display technology. The screen resolution of the GW2765HT monitor is 2560 x 1440. The refresh rate produced by this monitor is 60Hz. The panel used on this monitor is IPS which produces the best color quality. The response time on this monitor is 4ms while the backlight technology is all LED. The brightness produced by this monitor is 350cd/m2 and the color depth is 8bit. The color coverage by this monitor is 100% of sRGB standards. The pixel desnity on GW2765HT monitor is 109ppi and dynamic contrast ratio is 2M:1. The aspect ratio of this monitor is 16:9.

The flicker free technology and low blue light production by this monitor makes it very safe for your eyes. The monitor also has 2 x 1W speakers built into it. When it comes to wired connectivity the GW2765HT monitor has a headphone jack, 1 x HDMI port, 1 x Display Port.

The performance of this monitor is very well and it is not a very high performing monitor. This monitor can be used externally with MacBook Pro but you can’t expect to get high performance gaming results off it. This is a very good option for simple everyday use.

Pros

Cons

100% sRGB Coverage

None That We Could Find

Flicker Free Technology

Low Blue Light

Conclusion

If you are looking for a monitor which you can use as a simple display unit and don’t expect really high performance out of it then the GW2765HT monitor by BenQ is a very good option for spending around $250.

The last external monitor we have on here for use with MacBooks is the model 34UC98-W produced by LG. LG as a very reliable brand as we have previously mentioned when it comes to production of high quality and high performance display units whether they are TVs or monitors. This particular monitor is a wide screen monitor and it provides large and detailed pictures. The ratings of this monitor are very high. How it fared in our review? Let’s find out.

Let’s start with the design of the 34UC98-W monitor. The design is ergonomic and it features screen height adjustment up to the height of 110mm and the tilt angle of the screen is between -5o and 15o. The viewing angle of the screen is 178o on both horizontal and vertical angles. The screen of this monitor is coated with 3H hard coating as well as anti glare coating.

When it comes to features the 34UC98-W monitor it uses QHD technology. The screen resolution of this monitor is 3440 x 1440. The refresh rate of this monitor is 60Hz. This monitor uses IPS panel type which provides the most detailed and brightest picture quality. The response time of 34UC98-W monitor is 5ms. The backlight technology features LEDs and the brightness this monitor’s screen produces is 300cd/m2. The color depth of this monitor is 10bit. The color coverage by 34UC98-W monitor is 99% of the sRGB standards. The dynamic contrast ratio of the 34UC98-W monitor is 5M:1 and the aspect ratio is 21:9 due to it’s extra wide screen.

When it comes to dynamic refresh rate the 34UC98-W monitor features AMD’s FreeSync technology which allows for the best gaming experience. The wired connectivity is covered by 2 x Thunderbolt 2.0 ports, 2 x HDMI ports, 1 x Display port, 1 x USB 3.0 port and 1 x USB 3.0 (upstream) port. The 34UC98-W monitor also features a game mode to optimize the whole monitor’s performance for better gameplay. There are 2 x 7W built in speakers on this monitor as well.

When it comes to performance the 34UC98-W monitor provides the best option for an external monitor for MacBooks. The picture quality on this monitor is excellent with no reported issues. The color detail is also worth mentioning.

Pros

Cons

Black Stabilizer

None That We Could Find

AMD FreeSync

Excellent For Gaming

Conclusion

If you are looking for something in regards to widescreen monitors that can be used with MacBooks as an external monitor then look no further than 34UC98-W QHD monitor by LG.

Conclusion

The monitor listed here for external use with MacBooks are some of the best in the market today. If they have any issues regarding their performance or build quality they have been mentioned here. We hope you find this publication useful. Let us know what you think about these monitors in the comments below.

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2 comments

Hello, I have a MacBook Pro running Mac OS X 10.9.5 and I have just acquired a ViewSonic VA1931wma to run as an external monitor. It is connected OK to the Thunderbolt port but the image is fuzzy because I cannot get the right resolution, which the info tells me is 1366 x 768. System Preferences/Displays on the Mac offers a number of options but not that. Can you help? Thanks, Russell